FORUM CIVIQUE EUROPEEN

EUROPEAN CIVIC FORUM

Hippolyte, 04300 Limans, France Limans, May 2005
Tél.: (33) 492 73 05 98
Fax: (33) 492 73 18 18
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Limans, May 2005

Introduction

The Sindicato de Obreros del Campo (SOC – Union of agricultural workers) was officially created almost thirty years ago, just after the death of Franco, based on experience gained in illegal work committees during his regime. It has led a long and hard struggle to defend and improve the rights of Andalusian day labourers. Back in the early 80s there were 500.000 such jornaleros in the region, most of whom had to emigrate for much of the year elsewhere in Spain or to other European countries.

Traditionally it has been active in the parts of Andalusia in which agriculture is dominated by enormous latifundia owning vast stretches of olives, fruit trees and other crops which require a large seasonal workforce.

It was only in 2000 that the SOC began its activities in the Andalusian province of Almeria where there is a totally different form of agriculture which has expanded massively since the 80s: the highly intensive production of vegetables in plastic greenhouses. The farmers, many of whom are former emigrants, own small plots of land of 1 to 5 hectares. With its 30.000 hectares the area around El Ejido is the biggest concentration of greenhouses in Europe, and probably in the world. It produces three million tons of vegetables a year, much of which is exported to the rest of Europe (above all Germany, France and the UK).

This “economic miracle” (from being one of the poorest areas of Spain El Ejido has become the third richest town in the country) depends entirely on the possibility of employing large numbers of migrant workers for short periods throughout the ten-month season. Many of the migrants are undocumented and almost all have no work contract. They are subjected to intolerable working and living conditions. At present it is estimated that there are about 40.000 “legal” migrants in the province, and about the same number of undocumented ones.

The municipality of El Ejido has a deliberate policy of segregation aimed at discouraging migrants from "colonising" the town centre. Most have to live in old shacks abandoned by the rural population or in huts made of old wood and plastic. They have to work in heat of up to 50°C and contact with huge amounts of pesticides. Needless to say, they are poorly paid (20 to 30 euros a day). Faced by the enormous pressure from distribution chains to cut prices, the producers try to survive by making savings in the only area they control, namely employment.

There is a powerful climate of racism against the migrants, both from the local authorities and much of the population. This was clearly revealed by the vicious riots that broke out in February 2000 in El Ejido against the mostly Moroccan workers and Spanish associations seeking to defend them.

Members of the SOC came to the province with the aim of supporting and strengthening the struggle of the migrant workers working in the greenhouses. Following the riots the workers had organised a general strike which paralysed production for several days. They managed to force the employers and the local administration to sign an agreement including most of their demands. This agreement was, however, never respected and the El Ejido riots have come to be seen as a victory for the most racist and reactionary forces in the province.

It is very difficult for the migrant workers to organise. At least half of them are undocumented and fear deportation. Most migrants live dispersed throughout the zone in huts between the greenhouses or on wasteland, many kilometres away from the towns. They have no places where they can meet and drink a coffee together.

There is also a very high level of mobility among the migrants. Due to the miserable wages and accommodation as well as the climate of racism they leave the region once they have the chance, above all if they succeed in obtaining a residence permit. They then go to other parts of Spain or Europe. The major trade unions in Spain have never become actively involved in the defence of migrant workers in the region.

This is why the SOC decided to open an office at Almeria in 2000. They share it with USTEA (an Andalusian teachers union). The SOC has two full-time representatives: Abdelkader Shasha who is Moroccan and Gabriel Ataya M’Binki (Senegalese). They both have considerable experience of local conditions, having worked for several years in the greenhouses. They have established a service of information and have become directly involved in problems linked to work conditions, violations of labour laws, poor accommodation, illnesses caused by pesticides... They have also helped migrants in their requests for residence and work permits.

In the reigning atmosphere of institutional racism the SOC is confronted with major obstacles. As a union it is marginalised and harassed by the local authorities. Its two representatives often receive threats. It is the only union genuinely active in the field ready to denounce systematically the abuses suffered by the migrants and to expose the fundamental injustice inherent in this form of hyper-intensive agriculture. And yet it receives almost no grant support from the government, unlike the major trade union federations.

The fact that there is a constantly changing workforce means that it is difficult to build up a strong basis of union militants able to organise the struggle for better conditions. This problem has been made even more acute by the growing phenomenon of “ethnic replacement”. Since 2002 there has been a big increase in the number of people arriving from eastern Europe and Latin America in search of work. It would seem clear that the employers and authorities have a deliberate policy of replacing the workers from North and sub-Saharan Africa who have shown that they are capable of organising strikes and demonstrations in defence of their rights.

The social situation is very tense as there is still a large African population in the region which desperately attempts to find work, even for a few hours a week. What is more, the pateras (small boats) continue to arrive on Andalusian beaches. There is therefore a growing competition between different migrant communities on the labour market – all to the profit of the employers.

The migrants do not perceive the SOC as a support or humanitarian association, but as their own organisation. It not only encourages workers to join the union, but also seeks to give support to immigrant organisations in the province. The SOC has actively participated in all of the struggles over the last four years: protests against the non-respect of the agreement signed in February 2000 after the riots, occupation of Almeria university and many other demonstrations and actions to demand the regularisation of undocumented migrants, demonstrations to protest against the local climate of racism...

The SOC has also denounced many recent cases of physical aggression against Moroccan workers in El Ejido and has helped the victims to lodge complaints in the courts. On 13 February the most serious of a long series of attacks took place. Azzouz Hosni, a Moroccan who had worked worked in the greenhouses for five years, was stabbed to death in the streets of El Ejido by a group of youths. He was an active member of the SOC whichg is convinced that it was a racist murder.

Project to open three union centres in the area

To increase its impact and efficiency the SOC urgently needs to strengthen its presence directly in the greenhouse zone. It is for this reason that it has decided to open three union offices or centres at El Ejido, Campohermoso (Nijar) and Roquetas de Mar.

These will enable the workers to have access to the services supplied by the union: information on their rights, assistance with the many administrative procedures (residence and work permits, work contracts...)... The centres will also provide places where the workers can meet socially, exchange experiences and organise campaigns to demand better conditions. Training courses will be organised with the aim of increasing the migrants’ self-defence and organisational capacities.

The SOC intends to buy these three centres. It is unrealistic to rent them as it is practically impossible to find a landlord willing to accept the union as a tenant, in view of the high level of intimidation and pressure which he or she would be subjected to.


Each centre would include

• An office for administrative activities and documentation

• A collective room for meetings and training activities

• A social area with a bar and telephone cabins (this will provide income which should cover the daily running costs of the centres)

The SOC believes that it can raise about 15.000 Euros for each centre from municipalities, local campaigns etc. In addition, it intends to take out a bank loan of 50.000 Euros per centre. It therefore needs to find financial assistance of around 54.000 Euros for each office. This support could come from other regions of Spain, but also from the rest of Europe.

The European Civic Forum has been closely following developments in the region of Almeria since the riots in 2000. At the beginning of 2005 it launched an appeal in different European countries. The ECF calls on trade unions, organisations and individuals to provide financial support for this project. This solidarity should not, however, only take the form of donations. It is also essential to develop long-term relations of friendship with the SOC, to visit them in Andalusia and to be ready at any time to intervene on its behalf when its representatives face threats or intimidation.

First SOC centre opened in El Ejido

Thanks to financial support already sent by the ECF and other organisations, a first centre has already been bought in El Ejido. It started to function in April and rapidly became a focal point for immigrants seeking information about the regularisation process then underway for undocumented migrants wishing to obtain residence permits.

Most of the immigrants in El Ejido are North Africans, above all from Morocco. The SOC now wishes to open a second centre in Nijar where there is a large concentration of migrants from Sub-Saharan Africa.